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Joel McNeely
| birth_place = Madison, Wisconsin, U.S. | instrument = Piano, organ, keyboard, backing vocals | genre = Film score, big band, classical, disco, funk, jazz, pop, R&B, soul, soft rock, swing | occupation = Composer, arranger, pianist, musician, songwriter, producer | years_active = 1986–present | label = Universal Republic, Republic | associated_acts = Seth MacFarlane }} Joel McNeely (born March 28, 1959) is an American composer, arranger, musician, lyricist, and record producer. A protégé of composer Jerry Goldsmith, he is best known for his film and television scores. He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series for his work on The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. He frequently collaborates with Seth MacFarlane and contributes to various projects by The Walt Disney Company. Biography Joel McNeely was born in Madison, Wisconsin. Both of his parents were involved in music and theater, and as a child he played the piano, saxophone, bass, and flute. He attended the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, studied jazz at the University of Miami, and earned a master's degree as a composition major at the Eastman School of Music. Lucasfilm chose McNeely to compose the soundtrack to the 1996 Star Wars novel Shadows of the Empire. This was an experimental project where he conveyed general moods and themes instead of writing music to flow for specific scenes. He is also known for conducting a series of re-recordings of film scores by Bernard Herrmann, Franz Waxman, John Barry, and other composers under the label of Varèse Sarabande, including those Herrmann wrote for Vertigo, Psycho and Citizen Kane. He also composed the score for The Avengers and the theme and music for FOX's Dark Angel. Additionally, he scored the movies Terminal Velocity, Iron Will (which was used in the teaser trailer to Toy Story, the theatrical trailer to Balto, and the VHS trailer to Mulan), Flipper, Gold Diggers, Samantha, Virus, and I Know Who Killed Me. He also scored a multitude of Disney animated films (Mulan II, Return to Never Land, Tinker Bell and many others). Currently McNeely scores occasional episodes of the FOX animated TV series American Dad!, since the fourth season replacing Ron Jones who left to focus more on composing for Family Guy, including the episode with the Back to the Future parody, and the season five premiere (among others). McNeely has produced both of Seth MacFarlane's studio albums, 2011's Music Is Better Than Words, and 2014's Holiday for Swing. In 2017, he composed a score for MacFarlane's new series, The Orville, along with Bruce Broughton and John Debney. Filmography Film 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s Television Awards and nominations Gallery File:Joel_McNeely_Million_Ways_Die_West_Afterparty_N-J65WdxXvGx.jpg|McNeely (on left) and Seth MacFarlane at the premiere of A Million Ways to Die in the West in May 15, 2014. References External links * Official Website of Joel McNeely * * Interview with Joel McNeely at FilmMusicSite.com Category:Joel McNeely Category:1959 births Category:American classical musicians Category:American film score composers Category:American television composers Category:Living people Category:Male film score composers Category:People from Madison, Wisconsin Category:Primetime Emmy Award winners Category:University of Miami alumni Category:Bernard Herrmann Category:John Debney Category:Bruce Broughton Category:Jennifer Hammond Category:James Horner Category:Simon Franglen Category:Sebastian Arocha Morton Category:Don Davis (composer) Category:J. A. C. Redford Category:Laurence Rosenthal Category:Shirley Walker Category:Matthew Margeson Category:Hans Zimmer Category:Steve Jablonsky Category:Rupert Gregson-Williams Category:Clay Duncan Category:John Ashton Thomas Category:James Dooley (composer) Category:Gavin Greenaway Category:Nick Glennie-Smith Category:Gordon Goodwin Category:Stewart Copeland Category:Michael Kamen Category:Dennis McCarthy (composer) Category:Morton Stevens